


Sand in your shoes

by tevinterhexe



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II
Genre: Fluff, M/M, dragon age in a word, prompt, sand
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-08
Updated: 2012-06-08
Packaged: 2017-11-07 07:14:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/428348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tevinterhexe/pseuds/tevinterhexe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Anders has a hole in his boots.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sand in your shoes

**Author's Note:**

> I started writting this fic ages ago for [Dragon Age In A Word – Week 12](http://dragonageinaword.tumblr.com/post/19693197346/prompts-week-twelve) over a tumblr. The prompt was "sand". Then my muse left me hanging and I only finished it just now.  
> And I should probably say that it can be read as a follow-up for another fic I wrote, ["The Price"](http://archiveofourown.org/works/343308), but it should work on his own as well.

“Is something wrong, Anders?” Fenris asked and looked at him quizzically when he stopped in the middle of the road with a scowl on his face.

Anders had noticed the bad shape his boots were in days ago; the leather was worn, the seams came apart and the soles slowly peeled away, but he couldn’t find the time to fix them himself and he didn’t have the coin to pay someone to do it for him at this moment and it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that they wouldn’t fix themselves and that the matter would only get worse over time.

So okay, ignoring it had probably been a bad idea. That never worked.

They were on their weekly route, roaming around the Wounded Coast, Isabela scouting a few paces ahead, Hawke and Fenris looking out for thugs, slavers, highwaymen, the usual, and him following them to make sure nobody died, if they actually found some.

Except they couldn’t rightfully expect him to concentrate on rooting out bandits and keeping everyone alive, when something was digging into his foot, could they? Pebbles caught between his toes, sand chaffing the skins off his feet, rough leather rubbing in all the wrong places… he could feel his skin blistering, effectively distracting him from everything and everyone around him.

Including Fenris, who was still starring at him with a deadpan expression that made Anders wonder just how long he’d made him wait for a response to a question he had no idea how to answer.

Against his better judgement he ignored his problems once more and continued walking, looking for Hawke and Isabela, who hadn’t noticed them falling behind, and hoped the elf would simply drop his question. Anders found it impossible to deal with what he started calling the “new Fenris”. No such luck, though. Fenris followed him, walking right next to him and even glancing at him instead of the road ahead.

“I asked you something.”

 _Yeah, don’t remind me! I’m trying very hard to forget._ Anders could help but feel slightly puzzled by Fenris’ persistence. What was he up to? Initiating a civil conversation, without snarling at him, calling him by his name on top of it. Something was definitely wrong, something with Fenris, yes. “No.”

“No? I’m quite sure I did, but let me repeat myself. Is something wrong, Anders?”

“Right. And I just gave you the answer to that.”

That gave Fenris some pause. “I... see.” He frowned and seemed to think about his next words more carefully. “What exactly is wrong?”

“I told you. It’s nothing!” _Just sand, just sand in my shoes._ “There is a hole in my boots.”

“Was it something I did?”

“Oh, I’m pretty sure the rough treatment they get in the various caves we frequent did it. Or maybe my laziness.”

“Because if it’s something I did, I would want to know what it was a--“

“Will you listen to me, it isn’t.”

“And whether I should apologise for it.” Fenris continued perfectly unperturbed by his interjection. “Or if I should rather do it again.”

Well, if that didn’t throw him off balance. “I... Do it again?”

“That’s what I said.”

 _Do what again exactly?_ Nervously licking his lips Anders couldn’t help but stare at Fenris. A flash of memory, Fenris’ face nearer than it was now, almost touching, a hand on his neck, a mouth on his own, a tongue-- _Oookay, about time to think of something else._ That’s not what they were talking about. Were they?

Finally he recovered and coughed awkwardly. “Yes, that’s what you said.  There is nothing to talk about, though. Or apologise for. Or do... again. My boots have a hole in them. That is all.”

Fenris nodded, but he was still looking at him the same unnerving way he had for the last few minutes. “I understand.”

“How? You don’t even wear any.”

“It’s been a while, but I still remember the feeling.” The elf said softly and smirked at some private joke Anders didn’t get.

“Wrong! That’s what it feels like. I can’t think of anything else. I didn’t repair them in time and now I’ve got sand in my shoes. And pebbles and who knows what else. It’s distracting. I didn’t know it would be like this.”

“So, you knew about this issue and instead of trying to fix it you chose to ignore it until it was too late?”

Something was terribly wrong with this sentence, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it just yet.

“Of course you would go and somehow make this my fault. As if it isn’t bad enough that I can’t find a moment of peace ever since, not even at night, or that I’m irritated long before we even head out with Hawke. That’s how troubling it is. So what? I let my guard down and now I can’t think straight, most likely endangering us all, but it’s not my fucking fault and stop looking so smug, you blighted elf! What do you have to grin at?”

“You’re not talking about your boots anymore, are you?”

“No!” Anders panicked. “Yes! I mean, yes, I am... still talking about... What else would I be talking about? You started th--”

He didn’t finish his sentence in favour of taking a step back, when Fenris came close enough for their arms to touch.

“This conversation has never been about shoes.” He stated calmly and Anders couldn’t argue with that, not after his little outbreak gave it all away. Fenris allowed him time to deny it once more anyway. He didn’t take the chance.

“It was something I did.” Again, time for denial. “I kissed you.”

The elf looked at him with pure adoration in his eyes and had done so for quite a while; how Anders refused to see it up until now was beyond him. He nodded. Remembering the beginning of their conversation he said, “Yes. Do you still want to apologise for it?”

“Do I have to?”

The change was almost non-existent, but Anders thought he saw a flash of disappointment. Surprisingly it hurt him, too. He took a quick step towards Fenris. “You mentioned something else you could do instead. Do you remember?”

“Of course. You blushed beautifully when I suggested it.”

And he was probably blushing again right now, because Fenris raised a hand and caressed his burning cheek. Leaning into the touch Anders closed his eyes, waiting for the promised kiss. The hand moved behind his head, drawing him even closer, while another hand settled firmly on his hip.

Everything was perfect, except the kiss didn’t come. They stayed this way for another odd seconds until Anders couldn’t stand the suspense any longer and opened one eye to take a peek at the elf in front of him. “You haven’t changed your mind, have you?”

It was unlikely given the way Fenris was still holding him tight, but that didn’t stop him from worrying and the elf’s face showing a pensive expression wasn’t helping. “Fenris, what is it? Please, talk to me.”

When Anders was sure to explode if he had to wait for an explanation even for a moment longer, Fenris finally – finally! – answered, “You compared me and my feelings for you to the sand in your shoes.”

Oh. Oooh. He did that, didn’t he? And he still thought it to be kind of accurate, really, but maybe that’s not what he should tell Fenris. “I compared you to far worse things than that, don’t you think? Hasn’t stopped you from kissing me before.”

Fenris snorted; the small smirk on the side of his mouth betraying his amusement. “You really want this _?” Want me?_ , the look in his eyes asked.

“I do.”

They shared a smile, simultaneously leaning closer. When their lips met, Anders decided that it was one thing to know Fenris loved him and quite another to actually believe it. Their first kiss had been good. This was better.


End file.
